Good Old Golden Rule Days
by Kenyade
Summary: High School. A time of constant change for teens. Sports, romance, stupid decisions, exams, it's all part of the equation. The problem: everyone has to find their own answer. Join Sonic and Co. as they look do just that. Full summary on home page.
1. Breakfast and Bus Rides

Yeah, so there's a funny story behind this fic

**Yeah, so there's a funny story behind this fic. Funny as in my power went out so I nothing better to do.**

**This is my first Sonic the Hedgehog fic, so I hope it turns out alright.**

**Just so you know, Sonic's school is a secondary school, which means that both middle schoolers and high schoolers are in the same bulding.**

**Remember, this is high school. There will be romance, sports, swearing, stupid decisions, and everything else that goes along with the territory. That's why it's rated T. So no lemons!**

**Anyways, let's get it on!**

Chapter 1: Breakfast and Bus Rides

The sun rose majestically over the horizon, covering the clouds in a beautiful pink light and bathing the suburban neighborhood and surrounding area in a warm glow. It promised to be a beautiful day. Or it would have been beautiful, if it wasn't for one thing.

* * *

"First day of school! First day of school! First day of school!" The incessant yelling could be heard anywhere on the block. The source came from a medium sized blue house comfortably situated between a small orange house with a for sale sign on the front lawn and another medium sized red house. Inside the blue house in question, a young fox was jumping up and down on his bed, his eager face a perfect match for his demeanor. His plain white socks were clean and lint free and his fur was neat and tidy from his head to his twin tails. It was these two tails that had earned Miles Prower the nickname "Tails," which was what he more commonly went by. "Come on, Sonic! Aren't you excited?"

"I'm absolutely ecstatic, little bro." Tails smiled across the room as Sonic, using a visible effort, pulled himself away from his covers. The blue hedgehog placed his bare blue feet on the ground, stretching and yawning as he did so. "Why don't you go downstairs and grab some breakfast while I get ready?"

"Okay, Sonic!" Tails leapt from his bed and raced out the door, leaving Sonic in the room alone, struggling mightily to not smile.

"How in the world does he have so much energy on a school day?" Yawning again, Sonic rose from his bed and made his way into the bathroom. After emptying his bladder, Sonic flushed the toilet and got into the shower. Sonic let out a yawn as he turned on the shower head, but it quickly turned into a gasp as the frigid water slapped him in the face. Grasping for the handles again, Sonic turned off the flow of water.

"Right. Flushing the toilet screws with the shower. Going to have to remember that some day." Cautiously, Sonic turned the handles just enough for a trickle to come out. Thankfully, it was back to normal. Sonic gave himself a good wash, dried off, pulled on his socks, and made his way downstairs.

* * *

Tails jumped the last four steps of the stairs and landed with a loud _thud_. As if in response to Tails' arrival, a voice called out from the room to his left.

"Morning to ya, Tails. Ready for your first day of school?" Tails walked into the kitchen to find Uncle Chuck, a middle-aged grey-blue hedgehog, placing two plates piled high with pancakes, bacon, and toast on the table. Tails smiled as he sat down in front of one of the plates.

"You bet I am, Uncle Chuck! Thanks for breakfast!" No sooner was Tails done speaking then he was shoveling the contents of the plate into his mouth. Uncle Chuck chuckled at the young fox as he made his way over to the sink and began washing the plates and glasses.

"So where's Sonic? Still sawing logs?" Tails swallowed a particularly large helping of pancake before he answered.

"No, he was awake. I think he was going to take a shower." Uncle Chuck nodded and continued washing the dishes. Tails had just finished his breakfast when the sound of footsteps in the stairwell announced Sonic's arrival.

"Morning, Unk." Uncle Chuck put the last dish away and turned towards Sonic.

"Morning, Sonic. Ready for your first day of school?" Sonic simply shrugged as he took the empty seat next to Tails and began eating his breakfast. Uncle Chuck rolled his eyes and turned his attention back to Tails.

"You got your backpack all set, right? And your schedule, too?"

"Yep. I packed my bag last night, and my schedule's inside." Uncle Chuck smiled.

"Good work, son. And you, Sonic?" The blue hedgehog nodded as he helped himself to a second piece of toast. Uncle Chuck looked over his shoulder at the clock hanging on the wall.

"It's almost 7:00, boys. You'd better hurry if you want to make the bus." Sonic swallowed his last piece of bacon and stood up.

"No problem, Uncle Chuck. Let's do it, Tails." Tails nodded, and then he and Sonic made their way to the front hall. Sonic then proceeded to slip on his favorite pair of sneakers: they were red and right with a golden buckle on each. He then slipped on his white gloves and threw his backpack over one shoulder. Tails followed suit, putting on his red-and-white sneakers and white gloves, both of which were different brands then the ones Sonic wore.

"Ready to go, little bro," asked Sonic. Tails smiled and nodded, so the pair made their way out of the house and down the front walkway. They had just reached the sidewalk when Uncle Chuck stuck his head out the door.

"Remember, Sonic, you have football tryouts after school today." Sonic flashed Uncle Chuck a thumbs up, and then continued on his way. Tails and Sonic were passing the red house next door when the front door opened. Standing in the doorway was a red echidna the same age as Sonic. He had dreadlocks, green, yellow, and red shoes, and two white gloves that each had two points where his knuckles protruded. It was the latter that had earned him his name.

"Hey, Knuckles! Ready for the first day of school?" Knuckles smiled as he closed and locked the door behind him before making his way over to Sonic and Tails.

"Yeah, Tails, I guess I am. What about you, True Blue?" Sonic smirked and shrugged his shoulders.

"I'm cool with it, I guess. Kind of cramps my style, but at least I get to see everybody again." Sonic's eyes glinted as he continued. "Besides, we get to go to football tryouts. You're going out, right Knux?" Knuckles smirked.

"You know it. That middle linebacker spot is as good as mine. Remember how our team dominated last year?" Sonic got a wistful expression on his face as he thought.

"Yeah, we were pretty good." Knuckles snorted.

"'Pretty good'? We went undefeated, man. When it came to offense, it was all you and Shadow. We had, what, seven plays and one formation? And you and Shadow still racked up the points against even the toughest defenses?" Sonic shrugged humbly, but a smile was plainly visible on his face. "So is the 'Blue Blur' going to be the first ever freshmen to start at Halfback?" Sonic's smile turned into a confident grin as he replied.

"That depends. Are you, Vector, Mighty, and Espio going to show the upperclassmen how to play?" Knuckles smirked.

"Let's just say that the Chaotix Defense will leave quite an impression. Figuratively _and_ physically." Sonic grinned and turned his attention to Tails, who had been quiet during the conversation.

"What about you, little bro? Going to join any clubs?" Tails smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, and I'm really excited about it, too! Rotor says that he can get me into the Robotics club with him." Sonic laughed.

"That Rotor, always the reliable one."

"Speaking of Rotor." Sonic turned his attention back to Knuckles, who was currently staring ahead of them with a smile on his face. The blue hedgehog followed his red friend's gaze and smiled as well when he saw the large purple walrus waiting at the bus stop, his trademark yellow hat on backwards.

"Well what do you know?" Sonic was about to call out to Rotor when the purple walrus bent down to inspect something on the sidewalk, revealing another person standing next to him. It was a pink echidna, and the sight of her made Knuckles smile.

"Hey there, Julie-Su!" The pink echidna looked away from Rotor and smiled at Knuckles.

"Morning, Knuckles. I'm surprised you're not catching a ride with your dad." Knuckles shook his head as he, Sonic, and Tails came up next to Julie-Su and Rotor.

"Naw, he left early this morning when he got a call from somebody down at the station. I can't really say much, but apparently they've gotten a big break in that jewel heist last month." Rotor stood up and brushed his knees off as Knuckles finished talking.

"Really? That's cool." Knuckles nodded and began talking with Julie-Su about her summer, so Rotor turned to Sonic and Tails. "So, Tails, still want to join the Robotics club?" Tails' face lit up with excitement.

"You bet I do! I have some great ideas that I think could help you guys out." Rotor smiled.

"Come on, Tails. It's not 'you guys,' it's 'us.' You're going to be in the club, too." Tails nodded enthusiastically. Sonic half-smiled as he scratched his nose with his index finger.

"So when's the bus going to get here, anyway?" In response, the familiar boxy yellow school bus turned around the corner and approached the stop.

"That answer your question, Sonic," said Knuckles. Rolling his eyes, the blue hedgehog got into line and then filed into the bus. The bus driver was an elderly chipmunk with graying fir and squinty eyes. And apparently his hearing was going as well.

"_**Good morning, children,**_" the bus driver practically yelled at them as they passed by. "_**How your summer?**_"

"It was nice, Mr. Na. How was yours," replied Rotor as he went by.

"_**It very good, Rotor. Very good. I get to see family. My daughter is mother now. Very exciting time. Very exciting.**_" Mr. Na hadn't noticed, but nobody was there to hear him finish talking, as they had all but run to the back of the bus. Mr. Na closed the doors and continued his route.

* * *

"And that's why I can't wait to drive, Tails." The orange fox looked at Sonic, who was currently leaning over the back of Tails' seat to talk to him.

"I don't know, Sonic. I think Mr. Na's sort of funny." Sonic rolled his eyes and slumped back into his own seat.

"Yeah, sure he's funny. But it loses its charm once the-"

"Don't ruin the surprise for him, Sonic," said Knuckles, cutting Sonic off mid-sentence. The blue hedgehog simply nodded before he put his hands behind his head and dozed off. Sighing, Knuckles turned to Tails.

"Can I take a look at your schedule, Tails?" The fox nodded and handed Knuckles his schedule. The red echidna read over the schedule, saying something about each teacher as he went along.

"First period Civics with Mr. Antione, huh? The guys got an outrageous French accent and a slight ego, not to mention he gives a good bit of homework. But he's a good guy and you'll do fine as long as you do the assignments. Second period you've got Science with Mr. Hoover. I think Julie-Su had him." Knuckles turned around in his seat so he could talk to the pink echidna. "Hey, Julie-Su, you had Mr. Hoover, right? How was he?" The female echidna thought for a moment before replying.

"He was an alright teacher. You didn't get a lot of dinky little homework assignments, but you'd get a project every couple of weeks. Not to mention his exams had the nasty habit of biting you in the ass. But he'll let you retake a bad quiz or test until the end of the quarter." Knuckles nodded and turned back to the schedule.

"Oh ho ho! What's this? You've got Mrs. Bunnie for third period Math? Sonic and I had her, too. Remember her, dude?" Sonic cracked an eye open and smirked.

"How could I forget, Knux? Without a doubt one of the _finest_ teachers I've ever seen." Knuckles laughed.

"Yeah, we learned a lot about angles and curves that year. Remember the ti-"

"Ahem." The sound of Julie-Su clearing her throat caused Knuckle's to stop mid-sentence, and the naturally red echidna's face turned a shade redder.

"Yeah, well, um, anyway, she's a good teacher. You'll like her. Um, fourth period you have Technology Tools with Mr. Washington."

"You'll like him, Tails. He's very knowledgeable about computers, plus he's a cool guy." Tails turned to Rotor.

"Really?" The purple walrus nodded sagely.

"Absolutely. He's the sponsor for the robotics club."

"Wow, cool! Maybe I'll talk to him today about me joining." Tails turned back to Knuckles. "What else is there?"

"Well, fifth period you have English with Mr. Green. He's kind of, um, permanently tripping on acid. But if you get him to like you, you'll get an easy A. Sixth period Shop with Mr. Ash. He'll give you an A as long as you put forth a good effort. And for your seventh period you've got…oh, sweet! You've got Study Hall as your last period everyday. You could skip that and go home early every now and then. Just make sure Mr. Big is sleeping and you're golden." Tails nodded as he took back his schedule.

"Thanks, Knuckles. It looks like I'm in for an interesting year." The red echidna smiled.

"I'd agree with that. And remember what I said about third period." Tails smiled and was putting his schedule back in his bag when the bus arrived at the first stop.

"_**Good morning, children! How your summer,**_" yelled Mr. Na as he opened the door.

"It was wonderful, Mr. Na," said a red-haired ground squirrel as she boarded the bus. She was wearing a blue vest with the front open and matching knee-high boots.

"It's very nice to see you again, Mr. Na," said the lynx who boarded the bus after the squirrel. She had black hair and was wearing a purple toga. Mr. Na smiled at her.

"_**You very well mannered child, Nicole. Very well mannered.**_" Nicole smiled and followed the squirrel to the back of the bus. When they reached the group, Sonic sat up and smiled.

"Well hello, ladies. How was your summer? Did you miss me?" The squirrel rolled her eyes at the blue hedgehog while the lynx giggled bashfully.

"Yes, Sonic, I was absolutely _distraught_ without you." Everybody but Sonic laughed at this.

"You know what, Sal? Because of that little comment, you don't get to sit next to me. Nicole, pop a squat." The lynx blinked, unsure of what to do. Fortunately, Sally made the decision for her.

"Go on, Nicole. I was going to sit with Rotor anyway." Nicole hovered for a few more seconds, and then plopped down next to Sonic. Meanwhile, Sally sat down next to Rotor, and the pair began trading stories about the summer. Knuckles, Julie-Su, and Tails were discussing something about classes, so Sonic turned to Nicole with a smile.

"So, Nicole, how was your summer?" The lynx blushed and began to play with the bottom of her toga.

"It was quite entertaining. I engaged in numerous activities of merriment, and Sally and I spent many hours of what she calls 'girl time' together." Sonic nodded looking Nicole up and down.

"And I'd say it paid off. You look great. I think your hair looks better at this length." Nicole blushed furiously, fussing with the bottom of her toga even more.

"Th-thank you, Sonic. Your c-compliment is of great value to me." Sonic simply smiled and leaned back into the seat.

"Anytime, Nicole. Now if you excuse me, I'm going to catch a few Zs before the middle schoolers arrive and it starts." Tails, hearing the comment, turned to Sonic with a puzzled expression on his face.

"Before what starts, Sonic?" The blue hedgehog didn't open his eyes as he responded.

"You'll see, little bro. You'll see."

* * *

"You suck!"

"Shut up, bitch!"

"Make me, asshole!"

"Suck my balls!"

"You'd like that, fag!"

"How about that bus driver?"

"Yeah, what a freaking dinosaur."

"And his accent? What a weirdo."

"Is it like this everyday," Tails asked.

"Everyday, little bro. These kids get it into their heads that swearing is cool and that it makes them tough. Next thing you know, this is what happens. And Mr. Na can't do anything because half of the time he doesn't know they're doing it," said Sonic as he continued to try and sleep.

"You just have to learn to live with it, Tails. It's a sad fact," added Sally.

"But if any of them try and do something detrimental to you…" Knuckles finished his sentence by slamming his fists together. Julie-Su smiled her approval.

"I just can't fathom why these kids behave in such a despicable manner. It is entirely unbecoming and rather discomforting." Rotor turned to Nicole and smiled when she finished.

"Well just look on the bright side, guys." Sonic opened one eye as he replied.

"And what might that be, Rote?" The purple walrus grinned.

"We're here."

* * *

**And that's Chapter 1. What do you guys think? I think it turned out ok, for an introduction. Once I get into day and the story starts to move along, it'll get better. I promise.**

**Anyway, if you have any questions/comments/concerns/ideas, or if you just want to say goodjob/flame, the review button is right down there. PMs are always welcome as well.**

**I hope to see you guys next time, and, once again, it'll get better as time goes on.**

**Later, all!**

_Kenyade_


	2. First Half of the First Day

**So here we are with the second chapter of my tale. Not much in the review department, but at least I've gotten some hits, right? Thanks for reading.**

**Since there were no questions, we'll get right to the story.**

**Oh, and the Algebra Teacher is based off of my old teacher.**

**Enjoy!**

Chapter 2: First Half of the First Day

"Wow," breathed Tails as he stared out the bus window.

Before him lay Knothole Secondary School, the building where he'd spend the next six years of his life preparing for the future. Inside those hallowed halls he'd make friends, taste heavenly success and crushing defeat, and, if he was lucky, discover who he was. Of course, this effect was lost on Tails' older companions.

"That's the last time you'll say that about this place, little bro," Sonic said without bothering to look out the window.

"Welcome to hell." Tails jumped slightly, having failed to notice Knuckle's sneaking up behind him. The red echidna's laughter was silenced by a none-too-gentle smack from Julie-Su.

"Now don't go and scare Tails on his first day, Knuckles." Knuckles simply shrugged and leaned back into his seat.

"Whatever you say, ma'am." Julie-Su rolled her eyes and kicked at Knuckles' seat, knocking the red echidna forward. Everybody laughed at the two Echidnas, save for Tails. The two-tailed fox was still staring out the window, only this time he wasn't looking at the school building.

"Hey, Sonic? What's with those kids sitting on their cars over there?" Sonic didn't need to look to understand what Tails was talking about.

"That's the senior parking lot, Tails. Most of the seniors who drive just sit on their cars and talk, or sit _in _their cars and catch a few Zs before class. It's like their own private social hour." Rotor nodded in agreement.

"Private being the key word, Tails. If you're not a senior, you'd better have been invited there or gotten a ride. No underclassmen allowed."

"That hardly seems fair," Tails pointed out with a frown. Sally let out a quiet snort at this.

"Oh please, Tails. They're seniors. _Seniors_. As far as they're concerned they own this school. This time next year they'll be working, in college, or living in their parent's basement and smoking marijuana." Nicole shook her head sadly.

"I wish you wouldn't discuss marijuana smoking in such a joking fashion, Sally. It's a very serious problem."

"And I'm _being_ serious, Nicole," countered Sally. "I wish I wasn't, but those are three distinct probabilities."

"Hey, look at that!" Everyone but Sonic looked to where Tails was pointing, and even the blue hedgehog spared a glance when Sally and Nicole gasped in unison.

Three kids were riding into the senior parking lot on skateboards. One was a green hawk, another was a purple swallow, and the third was a giant grey-white albatross. Every senior in the parking lot was watching the three skateboarding birds closely.

"Ten bucks says the big guy does something stupid," Knuckles announced to nobody in particular.

"No," said Sonic, who was now watching the scene closely. "No, he won't do squat. But I'll bet my electric guitar that the green hawk starts a fight."

"You're on, Sonic."

Everybody watched the scene closely. Using the board like an extension of his body, the green bird leapt onto a pick up truck, grinded down its side and finished by jumping off and pulling a 360 degree turn. Upon landing, the green hawk stepped off his bard and began bowing.

"Here we go," muttered Sonic as he leaned back into his chair.

The owner of the truck, a muscular brown ram, came over and shoved the green hawk, apparently nonplussed that his ride had been used as a rail-pipe. The green hawk flashed a rude hand gesture and shoved the ram. There was apparently some name calling, and then the ram suddenly lashed out and punched the hawk in the face. Before the ram could inflict another blow on his stunned target, the grey albatross flew in on his skateboard and smashed the ram back against his truck. The green hawk recovered and moved in to help the albatross' assault on the ram.

The commotion brought several other seniors over, all apparently friends of the ram. As the scuffle quickly turned into a brawl, the Student Resource Officer, a large pig, and several faculty members came scurrying over. The last thing the kids on the bus saw before they turned the corner and came to the bus loading zone was the Resource Officer pinning the albatross against the car with one hand. Sonic turned to Knuckles with a grim smile.

"That's ten bucks, Knux." A half-smile spread across the red echidna's face as he replied.

"Sorry, man. I'm a bit strapped for cash."

"Figures," Sonic snorted.

Mr. Na pulled the bus into its unloading space and opened the door.

"_**Enjoy your first day of school, children!**_" Sighing, everybody got up and headed towards the front of the bus.

* * *

As Sonic and his friends disembarked from the bus, they each pulled out their respective schedule to compare classes.

"Looks like I have Algebra I first period," said Sonic as he read over his schedule. "What about you, Knux?" The red echidna scanned his schedule before answering.

"I've got English 9 first period."

"Me, too," exclaimed Julie-Su happily, which garnered a happy smile from Knuckles.

"Sweet. At least I've got one friend in that class. What about you, Rotor?" The purple walrus checked his schedule before saying:

"I've got Graphic Design."

"Hey, I've got that first period as well." Rotor turned to Sally and smiled.

"Cool. That'll be a good way to start the day." Sonic began tapping his foot, one of his well-known signs of irritation or impatience.

"You mean to tell me I'm alone in first period? That bites."

"Actually, Sonic, I have Algebra I as my first class as well." The blue hedgehog turned to Nicole, a smile spreading across his face.

"Thank heaven! I've got somebody smart and pretty to talk to in class." Nicole blushed and began staring at her feet.

"I'm glad I'm able to be of assistance." Sonic chuckled and put his hand on Nicole's shoulder.

"Come on, Nicole. I'll walk you to class." The lynx blushed harder, but smiled as she and Sonic said goodbye to their friends and headed for class. Sally and Julie-Su suddenly started giggling.

"What's so funny, you guys?" asked Tails. Sally composed herself enough to answer.

"Julie-Su and I were just commenting on what a _cute_ couple those two make." Tails' eyes practically bugged out of his head at this.

"They're a couple? I had no idea!" Sally laughed at this while Julie-Su rolled her eyes.

"It was a joke, Tails," explained the pink echidna. "They're not really a couple." Tails blushed and scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment.

"Oh…I knew that." Sally smiled.

"So, Tails, do you need help finding your class?" A voice from behind the group caused them to turn.

"I think I can help him with that," called a voice from behind the group. Everyone turned around to see a smiling pink hedgehog in a red dress.

"Hey, Amy. How was your summer?" Amy offered Rotor a smile.

"It was alright. Kind of dull, but that's ok," she replied as she turned to Tails. "So you want me to show you to your first class, Tails?" The orange fox nodded.

"Yeah! If you don't mind that'd be great." Amy smiled and motioned for Tails to follow.

"Then let's get going. See you guys later!" Everyone waved goodbye to Amy and Tails as the pair went on their way.

"Well," Sally began after a moment, "we better get going ourselves. Don't want to be late on our first day." Knuckles and Julie-Su nodded their agreement and headed off to their class together. Rotor turned to Sally and bowed extravagantly.

"Shall we proceed?" Sally giggled and rolled her eyes.

"Oh, by all means." Laughing, the purple walrus and the ground squirrel made their way to their Graphic Design class.

* * *

Sonic and Nicole arrived at their Algebra I class early enough to snag the seats they wanted, but late enough so as to not seem like total losers. Sonic nestled into his seat in the back-corner of the room with Nicole taking the one in front of him.

"Well this should be a fun way to start every other day." Nicole turned around in her chair and smiled happily.

"Yes, I believe that this class will be a great source of fun and education. Also, Sally has informed me that you are quite a skilled conversationalist, which should eliminate any boredom encountered." Sonic cocked an eyebrow quizzically at the last part.

"When did Sally say that?" Nicole suddenly blushed, obviously flustered at saying something she shouldn't have.

"Um, when did Sally say what?"

"When did she say I was a good conversationalist," Sonic pressed eagerly as he leaned forward.

"Um, I don't know if she said that _exactly_, I might not remember it accurately. It's possible that-"

"It came up during one of your 'girl time' sessions, didn't it?" Nicole, who had begun to play with her hair nervously under Sonic's close scrutiny, put on an irritated expression.

"I can now honestly confirm Sally's belief that you are incorrigible."

"Sally thinks I'm incorrigible too," asked Sonic, his eyes flashing joyfully. Nicole slapped her hands over her mouth at this second slip. Furious, the blushing lynx spun around and sunk down into her chair. Sonic chuckled quietly to himself at Nicole's behavior.

"Don't sweat it Nicole," counseled the blue hedgehog as he placed a reassuring hand on the upset lynx's shoulder. "I won't tell Sally that you told me anything." Nicole turned her head, a slight smile spreading across her face.

"Thank you, Sonic. This is the reason I told Sally I thought you were a good person." Sonic smirked when he heard this.

"Well thank you, Nicole. You aren't so bad yourself." The pair held each other's gaze for a few more seconds, and then turned their attention to the teacher, who had just started speaking.

"Morning, class," said the teacher, a soft-spoken black bear. "I hope you all are ready to learn Algebra I. As long as you follow my rules we'll get along fine. We straight so far? Are you sure? I'll axe you again. Are we straight so far? Good. Now, you may think you know all there is to know, but…" As the teacher continued his first day introduction speech, Sonic slowly tuned him out. The blue hedgehog's attention drifted from one object to another: the back of Nicole's head, the chipmunk that was picking his nose in the opposite corner, and the senior who didn't care enough to pass freshmen math.

_Bang!_ Everyone's attention was drawn to the door, which had just been kicked open. In the doorway stood the green hawk from the parking lot fight wearing a smirk that couldn't quite cover up the fact that he had a nasty black eye and some missing feathers.

"Can I help you?" The hawk walked into the classroom, handed a slip of paper to the teacher, and headed to the back of the room where there was an empty seat next to Sonic. After reading the note, the teacher shook his head sadly and tossed the slip of paper into the trash can.

"Welcome to class, Jet. I'm sorry that you missed the first part of the lecture. Would you like me to quickly cover the major points?"

"Nah, teach," Jet snorted sarcastically as he gestured at Sonic. "I'll just get little boy blue here to give me the lowdown after class." The teacher, who had never really been listening to Jet in the first place, continued on with his introduction. Sonic looked at Jet and raised his eyebrows in mock surprise.

"I'm amazed you can see what color anything is with that shiner you've got there." Jet smirked as he pointed at the eye in question.

"Oh this thing? Got it this morning in the senior parking lot. I took on about twenty of those guys single-handed." Nicole made a small coughing noise at this, causing Jet to notice her for the first time.

"Are you doubting Jet, cutie? Not only is my body awesome enough to take on twenty seniors, it's also quite capable in showing you a good time." Nicole looked over at Jet, a fake-flirtatious smile on her face.

"Oh it can, can it? I bet it can also show me you're incredibly small-"

"I find it rude when my students talk when I do," called the teacher, cutting Nicole off in mid-sentence.

"I think you just got rejected, man," Jet shot Sonic a nasty look before slumping back into his chair and shutting up for the rest of class.

* * *

When the bell rang to signal the end of first period, everyone except Sonic and Nicole shot out the door. The hedgehog and the lynx casually made their way out of the room, laughing at the events that had unfolded.

"You absolutely destroyed him, Nicole," Sonic stated approvingly.

"This lynx has some claws," Nicole replied with a grin.

"Well you should show them more often," said Sonic, his eyes twinkling mischievously. "It's kind of hot to see you get angry."

"I-I d-don't, I mean, um…" Nicole stuttered over her words as she blushed so hard her face turned redder than Knuckles'. Smiling, Sonic patted her shoulder and walked off down the hallway.

"See you later, Nicole." It took the lynx a few moments to realize that Sonic had left, which made her, impossibly, blush even harder.

* * *

Mr. Washington, who taught both the middle school students and the high school ones, was busy discussing his grading policy in Graphic Design when a knock sounded on the classroom door. Spinning around, Rotor and Sally were surprised to see the purple swallow from the parking lot walk into the room.

"Sorry I'm late, Mr. Washington. I have a note from the office." Mr. Washington, a shrunken, kindly old black man, wore a friendly smile as the swallow handed him the note.

"Don't worry about it Miss…Wave," said Mr. Washington as he read her name on the note. "Why don't you have a seat next to Rotor over there? We're just discussing my grading policy." The purple swallow nodded her understanding before walking over to Rotor and plopping down in the seat next to him. The purple walrus wore a cheerful smile as he extended his hand in greeting.

"Hi. The name's Rotor." Wave smiled back and shook the offered hand.

"I'm Wave. Nice to meet you." Sally, who was sitting next to Rotor, leaned towards Wave.

"Hi, I'm Sally. If you don't mind me asking, what's with that stunt that green hawk pulled this morning?"

"You're talking about Jet," replied Wave as she shook her head sadly. "He's just way too headstrong for his own good."

"Oh, I hear that," Sally agreed with a knowing smile. "I have a good friend who's exactly the same way."

"Now, now, Sally," warned Rotor with a wag of his finger. "You shouldn't talk about Sonic behind his back like that."

"Sonic? I was talking about you," responded Sally, a look of mock-innocence plastered on her face. Wave laughed as Rotor rubbed his temples with his hands and sunk down into his chair.

"This is going to be a long year."

* * *

Time continued to crawl forward for all the students, but finally the time came when it was time for lunch. Julie-Su, who had History with Sonic before lunch, was forced to shake the blue hedgehog awake when the bell failed to jar him from his slumber.

"Come on, Sonic. It's time for lunch." Yawning, the blue speedster leaned back in his chair and stretched.

"Thanks for the wakeup, Julie-Su. Wouldn't have wanted to miss the best part of the day besides dismissal." Smiling the, the pink echidna and Sonic made their way out of the class room.

"Well, that's half the day gone," said Julie-Su.

"Yeah," replied Sonic with a smile. "Let's hope the second half goes a bit faster." Laughing, the pair made their way to the cafeteria.

* * *

**Well, Chapter 2 is done. Not quite sure how I feel about it. I definitely need to revise it or add something somewhere, but I'm just too lazy right now.**

**Anyways, thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed it.**

**As always, if you have any suggestions/praise/flames/comments/etc., don't forget that the little blue review button is always accepting visitors.**

**Well, thanks for reading and I'll see you next time.**

**Later.**

_Kenyade_


	3. Day 1, Part 3 Action!

**So what I want to do eventually with this story is have each chapter cover a week in the school. All I need to do is find the work ethic and time to do that.**

**So I figured out how to work the fancy Reader Traffic thingy, and I've discovered that over 10 people different people have read this story. One of those people took the time to review. So what I have to take from the lack of reviews is that people either love it so much they're speechless, or that they hate it and leave.**

**Reviews are appreciated!**

**Anyways, back to the story.**

Chapter 3: Day 1, Part 3. Action!

Upon opening the door to the cafeteria, Sonic and Julie-Su were bombarded by a powerful combination of smells from expired food and one hundred different conversations. As Julie-Su scanned the cafeteria for their friends, Sonic gazed forlornly at the lunch line. Or, more specifically, at the length of the line.

"Oh man. The line's out the door! How do they expect me to wait in that?"

"You could try being patient for once," answered Julie-Su as she continued scanning the cafeteria.

"Patience? Pft," snorted Sonic as he shot Julie-Su a look-who-you're-talking-to look.

"It's just an idea," said Julie-Su with a shrug. Looking to the left side of the cafeteria, the pink echidna suddenly noticed Knuckles waving to her. Smiling, Julie-Su waved back and began to pull Sonic behind her.

"Come on, Sonic. They're over here." The blue hedgehog sighed in defeat and allowed himself to be led over to the table. The pair arrived to find Knuckles, Rotor, Espio the Chameleon, Mighty the Armadillo, Vector the Crocodile, and a black hedgehog seated at the table. Mighty, who had a chili dog half way to his mouth, smiled at the pair and gestured towards the black hedgehog.

"Hey guys. Look what we found!"

"Hey, Shadow," Sonic said in greeting. The black hedgehog merely nodded and kept eating his Subway sandwich.

"I didn't know that they served Subway at school," Julie-Su said, gesturing at Shadow's lunch. The black hedgehog swallowed the bite in his mouth before answering her.

"They don't."

"Oh…_Oh_," exclaimed Julie-Su as the meaning of Shadow's words hit her. "Well I guess that explains that. Anybody want to go wait in line with me?"

"I'll go," replied Knuckles. "I haven't eaten yet, either."

"Ok, great," said Julie-Su, obviously happy that Knuckles had decided to go with her. As the two echidnas made their way over to the lunch line, Sonic plopped down into the chair next to Mighty, trying not to stare at the chili dog the armadillo was currently munching on happily.

"So, you guys are all going out for the football team, right," asked Sonic.

"Damn straight we are," replied Vector, who somehow managed to hear conversations while he blasted his music. . Mighty, who was chewing his chili dog slowly with his eyes closed, simply gave Sonic a thumbs-up. Espio just nodded as he continued eating his salad.

"I will most assuredly be going out," stated Shadow with a cocky smirk. "You rejects need a Quarterback with enough talent to carry the entire offence. Who else could possibly do that but me?"

"I don't know, Shadow," responded Sonic. "Maybe a crippled monkey with no hands?" Everybody laughed as Shadow shot Sonic a nasty glare.

"I don't know guys," Rotor chimed in. "It seems to me that Shadow's ego is big enough to serve as an offensive line on its own." Shadow practically snarled at Rotor; the black hedgehog was not one to take being made fun of lightly. Sonic, sensing the danger, reached over and thumped Shadow on the back.

"Come on, Shadow," the blue hedgehog said with a jovial grin. "We're just poking fun, buddy."

"Don't _ever_ call me buddy, Sonic," replied Shadow as he leaned back in his chair. Despite the threatening words, there was no real anger in the black hedgehog's tone, and Sonic thought he saw the faintest of smiles touch Shadow's lips.

"I'm not doing football," stated Rotor as he took a bite of his ravioli. "I'm doing Robotics, and I just don't have the time to spare."

"That's too bad," answered Sonic, a frown appearing on the blue hedgehog's usually cheery face. "You were a good center. Plus Shadow really enjoyed putting his hands under your purple cheeks."

At Sonic's words, several things happened at once. Vector, who had been drinking a can of soda, promptly expelled the soft drink from his nose, Shadow's face turned red from a mixture of embarrassment and anger, and Rotor began to choke on his Ravioli. Sonic and Mighty began pounding on the table in fits of laughter while Espio reached over and thumped Rotor on the back, causing the purple walrus to cough up the chunk of food that had been so-rudely clogging his throat.

"T-Thanks, Espio," Rotor managed between ragged breaths.

"No problem," Espio said with a wave of his hand. Sonic and Mighty gradually regained their composure, and when they did Sonic noticed that Shadow was staring unblinkingly at him, slightly shaking with rage.

"Oh come on, Shadow," started Sonic. "We're just-"

"Yeah, yeah, just poking fun," Shadow interrupted. "Keep it up and it'll be the last thing you ever poke." Shadow grasped his sub and broke it in half to drive his point home. Sonic rolled his eyes, but decided not to test Shadow, just in case. An awkward silence settled over the table, but it was relieved by the timely arrival of Sally and Nicole.

"Mind if we join you boys," Sally asked with a smile. Sonic stood up and pulled out two chairs and brushed them off.

"For the lovely ladies," Sonic said with an elegant bow. Sally simply rolled her eyes and took the seat next to Sonic's while Nicole blushed and giggled, eventually sitting down next to Sally. Sonic retook his seat and, noticing an extra chili dog on Sally's plate, stared at the ground squirrel with his best Bambi-eyes.

"That chili dog wouldn't happen to be for yours truly, would it?"

"Even pigs deserve a meal," Sally replied with a smile. Sonic wore an expression of mock indignation as he reached for the chili dog.

"Excuse me, Sally. I'm a hedge_hog_, not a pig." Without waiting for a response, Sonic began to wolf down his chili dog. When he was about halfway done, Nicole cleared her throat and held out a carton of milk.

"I took the liberty of acquiring some milk for you, Sonic. I hope that that was acceptable?" Sonic placed the remaining half of his chili dog on the table and took the proffered carton with a smile.

"Thanks, Nicole." After taking a sip from the carton, Sonic placed his hand on the table and gestured at all the males present.

"You all saw it. I had two different girls buy me lunch. And why? Because I'm a stud."

"Well, _stud_," said Shadow with a vicious smirk, "I hope you brought an extra pair of gloves." Confused, Sonic looked down at the hand he had placed on the table.

"Oh man," muttered Sonic when he realized that he had unwittingly placed his hand in his chili dog, giving his gloves a nice chili coating. As everyone at the table began to laugh, Sonic chugged the last of his milk and began to lick the chili off of his glove.

"That is disgusting." Everyone looked up, startled by the new voice. Standing with her tray in both hands was Wave, a look of pure disgust on her face as she watched Sonic systematically clean his glove with his tongue.

"Hey, Wave," said Rotor, a smile spreading across his face. "Care to join us?"

"Well, I've got nowhere else to sit," replied Wave with a shrug. The purple swallow pulled up a chair next to Rotor and began to munch on her serving of Ravioli, apparently oblivious that everybody at the table was staring at her. After several moments of awkward silence, Sonic cleared his throat and attempted to initiate a conversation.

"So, Wave, what's with that green hawk you roll with? Is he just an egotistical jerk, or is he compensating for something?"

"You're one to talk, hedgehog," Wave retorted as she continued with her lunch. "I've heard you're quite the brash one yourself." Sonic smirked and leaned back in his chair.

"Yeah, I'll agree with that," said Sonic, causing Wave to shoot him a surprised stare. "Still, you don't see me starting fights in the senior parking lot.

"I guess Jet just has more faith in his abilities," said Wave as a half-smile spread across her face. "And between you and me, I think he's justified."

"Heh." Sonic placed his foot on the table and began rocking his chair slightly.

"If I may add something," Nicole suddenly spoke out, placing a disturbingly green tater tot back onto her tray. "While I agree that Sonic is impetuous, even brash, I have always known him to be of the highest moral standard. That's more than I can say for you're friend Jet."

"And what's that supposed to mean," Wave challenged with a fierce glare. Nicole faltered under the intense stare, but Sonic had no such problem.

"It means your green friend is an abrasive womanizer," stated Sonic simply. "He hadn't been sitting next to us in Algebra this morning for more than five minutes when he told Nicole his body could show her a good time." A silence fell over a table, like when a downpour suddenly stops but something bigger is coming right behind it.

"You're full of shit," said Wave suddenly. "I've hung out with Jet for as long as I can remember, and he's never said anything like that to me or any woman we've been around."

"Maybe he doesn't think you're pretty enough to hit on," supposed Sonic as he scratched his ear. "It's also possible he just hid that side of his personality from you. People do hide stuff from each other on occasion."

"I…no, you have to be wrong," Wave said with an unconvincing shake of her head. "Jet would never do that." Rotor looked at the purple swallow, feeling the growing doubt pouring off of her.

"Well," said Rotor in a loud voice, "what does everybody have next period?"

"Biology," replied Sonic absentmindedly; the blue hedgehog was gazing intently at Wave, apparently not sure if he should have said anything about Jet.

"Hey, me too, Sonic," exclaimed Mighty jovially. Somehow the armadillo had completely failed to grasp the mood at the table. Or maybe he grasped it all-too-well.

"I also have Biology," stated Espio as he continued to methodically eat his salad.

"Nicole and I have History," said Sally as Nicole nodded her head in confirmation.

"Yours truly has Biology as well," Vector said, once again displaying his amazing ability to hear while blaring his music.

"Biology," snorted Shadow. The idea of being stuck in the same class with everyone had apparently pissed him off.

"Well I guess it's unanimous," claimed Rotor as he looked over his schedule. "All we guys have Biology next period."

"Yeah," cheered Mighty. "Can you say party class?" Raising his hand, Sonic gave the ecstatic Armadillo an echoing high-five.

"I have Biology as well," Wave muttered between bites of her ravioli. Rotor put on a pleased smile.

"Well that's co-"

"Shut up!" The words came suddenly and unexpectedly, causing the whole cafeteria to fall silent as the sound echoed around the room. Scurrying onto his chair, Sonic was able to see the source of the commotion.

A silver hedgehog was glaring at a grey wolf. The silver hedgehog had his fists clenched and was shaking with barely controlled rage. The grey wolf had his hands up in a placating gesture.

"Whoa there, man. I was just joking around." The wolf extended his hand, offering a truce.

"Well ok," the silver hedgehog said, a smile slowly appearing on his face. "I guess there's no harm done."

But as the silver hedgehog reached forward to shake the wolf's hand, the grey wolf brought his other hand back and delivered a wicked blow, striking the silver hedgehog full in the face.

"Oomf," grunted the silver hedgehog as he stumbled backwards into the cafeteria wall. Smiling maliciously, the grey wolf followed his stunned target and pinned him against the wall by the neck.

"Get real, dude," snarled the grey wolf. "Like I'd ever shake hands with the son of a pig." The silver hedgehog, still slightly stunned from the cheap shot, could do next to nothing the grey wolf prepared for another blow.

"What's going on here?" Everyone in the cafeteria turned towards the source of the voice, expecting it to be a teacher. A couple kids gasped in surprise when they realized that the voice belonged to a red echidna who had just emerged from the lunch line.

"I'll ask once again," said Knuckles, a dangerous edge entering his voice. "What the _fuck_ is going on here?"

"Oh, not much," replied the grey wolf with an unfriendly smile. "I'm just teaching this punk some manners."

"May we ask why?" Knuckles glanced behind him to see that Julie-Su had exited the line.

"This-ugh-guy was insulting my dad because he's a cop," the silver hedgehog managed to utter, despite his neck being pinned against the wall. The wolf made a tut-tut noise and wagged his finger in front of the silver hedgehog's face.

"No, I made fun of you because you dad's a _pig_." The grey wolf looked over at Knuckles and smirked. "Kids these days. What are you going to do with them?" Knuckles didn't respond immediately. Instead, the red echidna turned around and handed his tray Julie-Su.

"Will you hold that for a sec, Julie-Su?"

"Anything for you, Knuckles," replied Julie-Su as she batted her eyelashes in a mock girlish fashion. Smiling, Knuckles turned around and walked over to the grey wolf.

"You know, my dad's a cop." The wolf let his head fall back and let out an agitated groan.

"Oh come on. What are you going to-oof!" Without warning, Knuckles had lashed out and landed a devastating blow on the side of the wolf's face. The wolf, who was thrown back by the sheer force of the punch, smashed into a vending machine and landed in a crumpled heap on the floor. Without giving the wolf a second glance Knuckles graciously took his tray from Julie-Su and placed his hand on the silver hedgehog's back, gently leading him over to the table where Sonic and company were seated. Julie-Su, on the other hand, made her way over to the wolf and bent down next to him.

"I feel I should warn you that Knuckles loves his dad a lot. You'd be wise to never insult the police force around him. Just a friendly heads-up." Smiling, Julie-Su ruffled the wolf's hair and stood up, looking at all the stunned faces who were still gawking at the scene.

"Anybody got a problem with what went down here?" The entire cafeteria shook their heads in unison, making Julie-Su smile.

"I didn't think so. You may now return to your meals." No sooner had the words left the pink echidna's mouth than had the students resumed their meals and conversations, acting as if the whole event had never happened.

_Ah, high school_, thought Julie-Su with a smile as she made her way to the table.

* * *

"Damn, Knux, you laid that guy out!"

"Thanks, Sonic," replied Knuckles, a smile forming on his face despite himself. "I knew you'd approve." There was a small rush of activity as those seated at the table made room for the silver hedgehog.

"Are you ok," Sally asked the silver hedgehog as he sat down. "That was a pretty lame stunt that guy pulled."

"Nah, I'm fine," replied the silver hedgehog as he gingerly touched the side of his face, which was beginning to swell slightly. "It's my own stupid fault for trusting that guy to be a decent person in the first place."

"Yeah," agreed Sonic, "that was a pretty dumb move on your part."

"Sonic," warned Sally as she shot him a glare.

"What? He's the one who said it. I was just agreeing with him."

The silver hedgehog laughed and extended his hand across the table towards Sonic.

"The name's Silver." Smiling, Sonic reached forward and accepted the gesture.

"I'm Sonic." And just like that, a friend was made. Introductions were made all around; even Shadow spared a couple words. Silver pulled out his schedule once he had become acquainted with everybody at the table.

"Hey, do any of you guys have Biology next period?"

"Do we," exclaimed Mighty, his face lighting up like a Christmas tree. "If Knuckles has it than that'll be every guy at the table plus Wave." All male eyes turned to Knuckles.

"It's up to you, Knux," said Sonic.

"Don't let us down, man" added Vector.

Nodding, the red echidna pulled out his schedule and checked the period in question. A hush fell over the table as all ears waited expectantly.

"Whelp," Knuckles began, putting his schedule away as he spoke. "It looks like…"

Every male at the table, save for Shadow, leaned forward eagerly.

"It looks like," coaxed Mighty.

"It looks like we have ourselves a testosterone-packed class."

There was chorus of "yeahs" and "damn straights," followed closely by high-fiving, fist-pounding, and chest-bumping.

"Men," said Sally as she rolled her eyes and leaned back in her chair.

"Can't live with them," began Wave.

"Can't live without them," finished Julie-Su.

Nicole smiled and picked up the green tater tot on her plate, studying it intensely.

"How in the world does the Health Department let food like this enter the school system?"

As Nicole finished speaking, the bell rang to announce the end of lunch. As everybody at the table got up and made their way to class, the lynx simply shrugged and tossed the rotten food item into the trash can.

* * *

Sonic, Knuckles, and the rest of the guys plus Wave arrived at their Biology class with the belief that they were going to be sitting together in the greatest arrangement of all time. What they found waiting for them utterly shattered those hopes.

"Assigned seats? Aw man."

"Don't worry, Mighty," Sonic consoled the melancholy armadillo. "There's still a good chance we'll all be paired with each other."

The group made their way over to the seating chart, hoping beyond hope that they'd all be paired with somebody they knew.

"Sweet," exclaimed Vector. "Me and my main man Knuckles are lab partners."

"Sweet," said the red echidna as he and Vector high-fived and made their way to their station. Mighty was the next to take a look at the seating chart.

"Phew," the armadillo sighed in relief. "Me and Espio are paired up."

"It's _Espio_ and _I_," corrected Espio, a twinge annoyance evident in his tone. Mighty simply shrugged in response and made his way the lab station with Espio right behind him.

"Well," Silver said as he checked the chart. "It looks like you and I are going to get to know each other, Sonic."

"Awesome," replied Sonic as he and Silver bumped fists and sat down at their lab station.

Rotor checked the chart next, turning to Wave with a smile when he was done.

"It looks like we're lab partners."

"Great," said the purple swallow, a small smile spreading across her face. "Just try to keep up." As the purple pair made their way to their seats, Shadow looked over the list.

"Who the hell is Mina?"

"Over here!" Shadow looked up from the list to see who had called. When he found the source, his eyes widened slightly.

_Well, this class just got interesting_. Waving to Shadow was a yellow-furred mongoose with long purple hair and brilliant green eyes. She was wearing a close fitting black shirt that only reached her midriff, brown shorts that barely covered her undergarments, and gloves and boots that had the same greenish-blue color.

"Hi," the mongoose greeted Shadow as he arrived at the lab station. "My name's Mina. You're Shadow, right?"

"Yes, I am," replied the black hedgehog as he put on a winning smile. "I get the feeling that this is going to be a fun year in this class."

"Yeah," agreed Mina with a bright smile. "I get that feeling to."

As Shadow opened his mouth to ask Mina to tell him about herself, the teacher, an elderly grey duck, walked into the room.

"Welcome Biology, class. I'm your teacher, Mr. Fillmore. This year we'll be learning about the wonders of…"

* * *

Mr. Fillmore had been droning for half the period when Silver turned to Sonic.

"Hey, Sonic, are you still awake?"

"Barely," replied the blue hedgehog, who was currently leaning the side of his head on his hand for support. "What's up, Silver?"

"I was just wondering if you were going out for any sports teams."

"You bet I am," said Sonic with a smile. "You're looking at the future first-freshman-ever to start at halfback. How about you?"

"I was thinking of going out for the football team as well. Lots of people have told me that I'm a pretty good receiver."

"Go for it," encouraged Sonic. "If you go out, that'd be everybody except Rotor."

"You know," decided Silver with a smile, "I think I will go out."

As the two hedgehogs exchanged a fist-bump, Silver noticed the purple haired mongoose sitting next to Shadow glance back at their table for about the tenth time that period.

"Dude," Silver whispered as he nudged Sonic in the ribs. "That girl up there's been checking you out the whole period.

"You sure," Sonic asked as he sat up a little straighter. "It's not that I doubt it or anything. It just pays to make sure."

As the words left Sonic's lips, the mongoose glanced back once again. When she noticed that Silver and Sonic were looking at her, however, she quickly spun around again. Silver turned to Sonic with a satisfied grin.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure she's crushing hard."

* * *

As Mina spun her head back around for the eleventh time that period, Shadow decided he had had enough.

"You know, Mina, it would save your neck some stress if you just asked me about Sonic."

"What," said the purple-haired mongoose in surprise. "What makes you think I'm looking at Sonic? Maybe I'm looking at the silver guy."

"If that were true, you would know his name," Shadow countered, desperately trying to keep the irritation out of his voice. Why was she looking at those two fools anyway?

Mina began chewing on her lower lip, apparently weighing something in her head. Eventually, she caved.

"Ok, you're right. I've been checking Sonic out the whole period. Can you blame me? He's just so dreamy, right?"

"Two things," replied Shadow as he massaged his forehead. "One is that you don't even know him. Second is: Why do girls always ask guys if they agree that some other guy is hot? Most guys never want to have to answer that question."

"To answer the first part," answered Mina, "there is such a thing as 'love at first sight.'"

Shadow let out a non-committal snort at this, but he allowed Mina to continue.

"And as for your question," continued Mina with a shrug, "I guess we girls just like to make you guys uncomfortable. It's the natural order of things."

Shadow allowed himself a small half-smile at this.

"You know, Mina," Shadow said as he leaned against the table, "I knew there was something I liked about you."

* * *

When the period had ended, all the guys met in the back of the class except Rotor, who had left with Wave when the bell rang.

"So guys," Sonic began, "Silver here's going out for the football team as well."

"Yeah, baby," exclaimed Mighty. "Epic-group high-five on three. One, two, thr-"

"**NO EPIC-GROUP HIGH-FIVES IN MY CLASS**," yelled Mr. Fillmore. "Now you boys run along to your next class."

Sighing, the group of boys walked out the classroom door and into the traffic-jam that was the hallway. As Shadow exited the room, Mina came up behind him and grabbed him by the arm.

"Come on, Shadow. We've got Seventh period English together."

As Shadow let himself get dragged down the hallway, Sonic and Silver said goodbye to the rest of the group and headed towards their Seventh period Spanish class.

"You better make a move on Mina, Sonic," Silver warned. "Shadow's going to steal her from you if you don't do something."

"So let him get the girl," Sonic replied with a shrug. "A girlfriend might make him slightly less depressing to be around."

Laughing, the two hedgehogs walked into their Spanish classroom.

"Hey, Sonic," called a familiar voice.

A smile spread across Sonic's face after he quickly identified the source.

"Hey, Tails," exclaimed Sonic.

Sure enough, the two-tailed fox was seated in the back of the room wearing a broad smile. Sonic and Silver made their way towards the back of the room and took the seats to the left and in front of Tails.

"Tails, Silver. Silver, Tails," said Sonic as a means of introduction.

"Nice to meet you, Tails," said Silver with a smile.

"Likewise, Silver," replied Tails as he returned the smile. "I don't remember ever hearing your name before, which I weird because I know all of Sonic's friends."

"I'm not surprised," answered Silver. "I just moved here a week ago, so I only met Sonic today."

"Ah, that would explain it," agreed Tails.

"Speaking of ahs," Sonic cut-in, "what did you think of Ms. Bunnie, Tails?"

"I-I, um, I thought sh-she was, uh…"

"Hot teacher," Silver asked.

"The hottest," Sonic replied, earning him a fist-bump from Silver.

"I…yeah, she was hot," Tails finally managed to say, making Sonic smile.

"See? Knuckles and I wouldn't steer you wrong, little bro."

_DIIIIIIIING!_

"Bien, clase" called the teacher, a female jaguar. "Eso fue la campana de empezar la clase. Seré su maestro, Sra. Baxter."

As the entire class simply gaped at her, Mrs. Baxter massaged her temples.

"Great. Another year of people not understanding a word of Spanish."

* * *

When the bell rang to signal the end of class, Sonic got out of his chair and turned to Tails.

"You coming to watch the tryouts, little bro?"

"Wouldn't miss them," replied Tails with a smile.

"Great," said Silver. "You can go meet the rest of the guys with me and Sonic."

"Sweet, let's go."

As the three walked out of the room, none of them noticed Mrs. Baxter sobbing in the corner.

* * *

**Well, there's Chapter 3. I think it's the best one so far. Definitely the longest.**

**Please, utilize that review button. I don't care if it's Anonymous, a flame, or a simple "omg u rox." I just want to know people think. I do write this in large part for myself, but I also write it for you readers. If I didn't want to know what other people thought, why would I post it on FanFiction?**

**Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I hope to see you again next time.**

**Later.**

_Kenyade_


	4. The Tryouts and the End of the First Day

**So yet another crappy title for the chapter. Sorry, I just haven't really put much thought into them. Hopefully, that'll change soon.**

**So that's now one review per chapter. Hot damn, I'm on a roll!**

Chapter 4: The Tryouts and the End of the Day

It took Sonic, Silver, and Tails longer than expected to make their way to the spot where they were meeting the rest of the guys. The hall that would have provided the quickest route was closed off because some kid thought it would be absolutely hilarious to set of stink bombs in three of the hallway's lockers.

The direct route being unavailable, the three of them were forced to take a detour through several congested hallways. This proved problematic, as every kid in the school seemed intent on standing in the middle of the hall and chatting away. Using a combination of finesse and brute force, Sonic and co. were finally able to break through the shifting wall of adolescence and reach their destination: an entrance at the back of the school that was only used by people heading to the football field and potheads sneaking out to light up during school.

Everyone was there when the three latecomers arrived: Knuckles, Shadow, Mighty, Espio, and Vector. Mighty was lying on his back and watching the sky, Knuckles and Vector were discussing something about tackling form, and Shadow and Espio were leaning quietly against the wall. Shadow looked up as Sonic walked out of the door.

"It's about time," remarked Shadow. "I was beginning to think that you ladies had chickened out."

Sonic crossed his arms and shook his head sadly. "Shadow, Shadow, Shadow. You didn't think you'd get away from us that easily, did you?"

"I'm allowed to dream," replied Shadow with a shrug.

"Well I certainly don't want to know what goes on in your dreams, Shadow," Knuckles said with a small smirk. "Lord knows what kind of awful stuff happens in your mind."

The group laughed as Shadow scowled and began to walk away.

"Well you losers stay here and enjoy your social hour. I'm going down to the field to secure my spot as starting Varsity Quarterback."

"Whatever you say, Shadow," replied Knuckles as he rolled his eyes. When the black hedgehog simply kept walking, the red echidna let out a sigh and turned to the rest of the group.

"Come on, guys. We don't want Shadow to get his butt handed to him without us there watching."

Laughing, the group followed Shadow down towards the tryouts. To reach the field one had to take a short stroll across a large grassy area that was often used by students who wanted to play a pickup game of some kind. Little patches of dead grass dotted the lawn here and there, but by and large the grass was in pristine condition.

After cutting across the field, the group came to the back of the home bleachers. While some schools simply used the metal bleachers often found at Little League baseball games, Knothole Secondary School had seen fit to go the extra mile.

Instead of crude aluminum benches, built on top of the sloping hill leading to the field, the builders of the stadium had dug _into_ the hill and built the bleachers there using concrete, giving the stadium an almost coliseum-like appearance. Or, at least that's what they had done for the home side of the stadium.

The visitor's side of the stadium wasn't much more than a rag-tag assortment of rickety aluminum bleachers. The most structurally sound part of these bleachers appeared to be the handicap-accessible ramps, which was both comforting and unnerving all at once.

The group entered through the stone archway at the top of the hill and was walking down the stairway when Mighty nudged Sonic and gestured to a group of students currently sitting in the bleachers.

"Check out the hotties, Sonic."

Looking over at the knot of students, Sonic easily picked out Sally, Nicole, Julie-Su, Amy, and Rotor. He was also surprised to see Mina there, along with an attractive purple cat whom Sonic had never met before.

"Well isn't that a pretty sight."

"Stop checking out Rotor, Sonic." The blue hedgehog shot Knuckles an amused look.

"Actually, Knux, I was checking out Julie-Su."

"Nice," replied Knuckles with a smile.

Suddenly, Amy turned around and, spotting Sonic, began waving enthusiastically. "Over here, Sonic!"

"Well, we might as well go say hi." Everyone offered their agreement, so the group made its way over to the knot of girls and Rotor.

"Good luck, Sonic," squealed Amy when the blue hedgehog was close enough. "I know that you'll do absolutely fantastic!"

Sonic shot Amy a smile and flashed a thumbs-up. "Thanks, Amy. I can always count on you for some positive reinforcement."

The pink hedgehog squealed as a deep blush spread over her face. "Anytime!"

Smiling, Sonic turned to Sally and Nicole. "I'm glad you guys could make it. It's always nice to have you guys in my corner."

"Yeah, well, I had nothing better to do," Sally replied with a shrug.

"That is most assuredly not true, Sonic," said Nicole with a half-smile. "We came to support you all, not because we were bored."

"Speak for yourself, Nicole," chimed in Julie-Su as she winked at Knuckles. "_I_ came to watch Knuckles get crushed by the upperclassmen."

"Oh you did, huh," asked Knuckles with a small laugh. "Your level of confidence in me is overwhelming."

"I'll always be in you corner, Knuckles," said Julie-Su with a toothy grin. The red echidna sighed and shook his head.

"What am I going to do with you?" Julie-Su laughed and punched Knuckles' arm playfully.

"Ahem." Everyone glanced towards Silver. The silver hedgehog was currently standing beside the pretty purple cat, their hands intertwined.

"Guys, this is my girlfriend, Blaze. Blaze, these are the guys." There was a short silence that followed Silver's words, during which all eyes moved from Silver, then to Blaze, then back to Silver. Finally, Mighty broke the silence with a piercing wolf-whistle.

"Dang, Silver. I never took you as a ladies man."

The silver hedgehog glanced at Sonic, an amused look on his face. "I'm not surprised, Sonic. You've only known me for a couple hours."

"Yeah, but I usually get a pretty quick read on people," replied Sonic. Silver simply shrugged and kissed Blaze on the cheek.

"I guess you've still have to fine-tune that skill."

Blaze smiled at the kiss, but the smile fell from her face when she noticed the slightly swollen side of Silver's face.

"Silver, what happened to you face," asked Blaze, her voice full of concern.

"Oh, it was nothing," Silver responded, dismissing the topic with a wave of his hand.

"It most certainly is not 'nothing'," snapped Blaze. The purple cat pulled away from Silver and put her hands on her hips, her face a mixture of concern and frustration. "Now what really happened?"

"It was nothing, Blaze. Some punk wolf in the cafeteria was talking bad about my dad because he's a cop. I told him to shut up; he played nice, and then popped me when I wasn't expecting it."

Blaze's tail flicked angrily and a low growl escaped her throat. "Oh he did, did he? What happened after that?"

"My man Knuckles happened," replied Silver as he gestured at Knuckles. "He floored the jerk in one hit. Two if you count the vending machine."

"It was nothing," said Knuckles modestly. "Anything for a fellow SOAC."

"SOAC," asked Blaze.

"Son Of A Cop," answered Silver. "It's an unofficial brotherhood."

Blaze turned to Knuckles with a smile. "Well, thanks for helping Silver. He needs somebody to watch out for him."

"That a fact," inquired Silver, raising an eyebrow as he spoke.

"It's _unofficial_," responded Blaze with a sly smile.

The group was continuing with their small talk when Mina suddenly stood up and called out.

"Hey, Shadow!" The black hedgehog was out on the field stretching, having opted not to join the others in their little get together. Upon hearing Mina's voice, Shadow looked up gave her a small wave. The yellow mongoose smiled and waved back eagerly.

"I didn't know you and Shadow were so close, Mina," Rotor pointed out. The yellow mongoose shrugged and sat back down in her chair.

"A girl can support her lab partner and English buddy, can't she?" As Rotor opened his mouth to respond, a loud, commanding voice resonated through the stadium.

"**All you ladies who are trying out for the football team get down here now**!"

"That's our cue guys," stated Knuckles. "We'd better go."

As the group made to follow Knuckles, Amy suddenly rushed up to Sonic and kissed him on the cheek.

"For good luck," she explained with a bright smile when Sonic looked at her quizzically.

"Uh…thanks, Ames." The pink hedgehog simply smiled and sat back down next to Sally, who was rolling her eyes.

"Come on, Sonic," yelled Mighty from the bottom of the bleachers. "It's not like you to be last!"

As Sonic rushed down the stairs, Tails called out from his seat next to Rotor.

"Do it to it, Sonic!" The blue hedgehog flashed the orange fox a thumbs-up before leaping the last five stairs and sprinting out to the middle of the field.

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Sonic, Knuckles, and the rest of the gang lined up amongst the other students who were hoping to make the team. Striding purposefully from one end of the line to the other was Coach Fang, a muscular white wolf. He had been Knothole Secondary's head coach for over ten years, and the school had never suffered a losing record under his guidance. This last part was something he stressed constantly.

"Welcome to Naoto Ōshima Stadium, ladies. As long as I've been coach, no team that played here has suffered a losing record. That's not going to change this year. Is that clear?"

"Yes sir, Coach Fang," yelled the players in unison.

"There are 50 of you pathetic wusses going out for the team this year. Due to limits on the number of players allowed on a team, and the number of returning players from last year, I'll only be taking the 20 of you who prove to suck the least. Is that clear?"

"Yes sir, Coach Fang!"

"I'm glad to hear it," said Coach Fang with a small smile. "This is a three day process, gentleman. At the beginning of everyday, I will post the names of the players who made the cut. For the ten of you who don't find your name on the list that day, don't bother showing up, and don't bother arguing. If your name _is_ on the list, don't get too comfortable. On Thursday, the day after the third day of try outs, I will post the final roster. All players who find their names on the final roster will report to the equipment room after school to receive their gear. These players will go to the scrimmage against Mobotropolis High on Friday. Are there any questions?"

"No sir, Coach Fang!"

"Good. Then let's go to work!"

88888

Before the players split up into the positions they were going out for, the entire team was clocked at the 40-yard Dash.

"This is your time to shine, eh, Sonic?" The blue hedgehog turned around and offered Knuckles a confident smile.

"It is one thing I can totally demolish everybody at."

"Hey guys," Silver suddenly butted in. "Look whose up."

Sonic and Knuckles looked back at the starting line.

"Son of a gun." Currently getting ready to run was the wolf that had punched Silver in the cafeteria.

"What's that clown think he's doing here," asked Sonic.

"Apparently he thinks he's got what it takes to be a football player," replied Knuckles with a humorless grin. "As if."

"Oh, he'll make the team." Sonic looked at Shadow as if he were insane.

"You're joking, right?"

The black hedgehog shook his head. "Open your eyes, Sonic. That wolf is _guaranteed_ a spot. He's the coach's son."

"Bullcrap," spat Silver.

"Don't believe, me? Just watch."

The whole group watched silently as the wolf ran his 40-yard Dash. While the wolf certainly was big and muscular, he wasn't especially fast, clocking in at 5.1.

"Thatta boy, Drago," exclaimed Coach Fang as he wrote the time down on his paper. "Alright, Big. You're next."

As a large blue cat waddled up to the starting line, Drago came trotting by Sonic and the rest, coming to a halt when he saw Silver. A vicious smile spread across his face.

"Well hello there, piggy. I see our little chat left a mark."

Silver balled his fists and was about to launch a biting retort when Knuckles stepped in.

"And I see our little chat didn't sink in at all. You really want to try your luck again?" Drago glared at Knuckles.

"My dad's the coach, echidna. I could get you cut if I wanted to."

"Try it," growled Knuckles. "I dare you."

The pair glared at each other for a few heated moments, neither wanting to be the one who blinked first. Eventually, it was Drago who caved.

"No, I won't get you cut, echidna," said Drago with a nasty smirk. "It'll be so much better getting to beat on you all year."

Knuckles didn't say anything. He simply kept staring at the wolf, unblinking. When Drago finally couldn't take it anymore, he turned to Silver, his swagger magically returned.

"Think you can beat my time, pig?"

"Beat it? I'll trash it," said Silver with a piercing glare. "Now why don't you get out of here before I decide to trash you instead." It wasn't a question.

Drago snorted indifferently, but made his way to another spot anyway. When the wolf was gone, Silver turned his glare on Knuckles.

"I don't need you to hold my hand, Knuckles."

"Easy, Silver," said Knuckles as he raised his hands in a placating gesture. "I was just being a friend."

The anger suddenly drained from the silver hedgehog's face. Letting out a short laugh, Silver punched Knuckles' arm good-naturedly.

"I know you were, man. I'm just messing with you."

"You cheeky punk," laughed Knuckles. The red echidna pushed Silver playfully. "You had me going there, jerk."

"If you two are done feeling each other up before your date, you might want to get ready to run your 40s."

Knuckles glared at Shadow, to which the black hedgehog responded with a shrug.

After a couple of other players ran their dashes, it was time for Sonic and company to run theirs.

Mighty was the first up, clocking in at 5.0. Vector followed him, rumbling his way to a 5.3. Espio was next with a 4.6. Silver clocked in at 4.7, much to the chagrin of Drago. Shadow ran after Silver, reeling off a time of 4.3. Knuckles came in with a 4.4. As Sonic walked up to the line for his turn, a cheer rose up from his friends in the bleachers.

"Sonic!" Waving to them, Sonic stepped up to the starting line.

"Aren't you going to get into a stance, hedgehog?"

"That's not my style, coach."

"Suit yourself," said Coach Fang with a shrug. "It's your time. On your mark…get set…GO!"

Sonic literally shot off like a rocket. The blue hedgehog's legs seemed to rotate in one continuous circle as he hurtled down the track. The hedgehog flew down the course at such a high speed that the fact that he stopped on a dime at the end was just as impressive as his time.

"Your time is…" Coach Fang stopped mid-sentence and shook his head. Giving the stop watch a quick shake, the large white wolf felt his jaw drop when he realized that there had been no mix-up.

"My time is," coaxed Sonic.

"Your time, hedgehog, is 3.75." There was stunned silence in the stadium, nobody quite sure what to make of the news. Fortunately, Mighty knew just the words.

"YEAH SONIC!" The rest of the group followed the armadillo's lead, running over to the blue hedgehog and giving him high-fives, fist-pounds, and all other forms of male congratulatory gestures. Even Shadow managed a friendly smile.

Coach Fang simply stared at the watch for a while.

"Damn."

888888

The first day of tryouts only got better after Sonic's amazing sprint. Knuckles made it known that the Middle Linebacker position was his, playing absolutely flawless football. Mighty and Vector proved themselves to be dangerous Right and Left Outside Linebackers, respectively. Espio dominated at the safety position, completely locking down his zone. The combination of the Shadow's rocket arm, pinpoint accuracy, and quick feet, coupled with Silver's amazing catching and leaping abilities solidified them as a deadly passing duo.

And Sonic…well, the only question left in Coach Fang's mind about Sonic was what would happen if the blue hedgehog ever actually got hit. He had gone through the entire day without so much as being touched by a defender.

"Good first day, boys," stated Coach Fang when the players huddled up at the end of the day. "We've got some real talent this year. For some of you, this will have been your last time on this field this year. All I can say is that I hope you did your best and better luck next year. Now everybody put your hands in."

The group stood up and raised their hands in the middle, creating a giant cone of limbs.

"Say it loud and say it proud, boys. Freedom Fighters on three. One, two, three-"

"FREEDOM FIGHTERS!"

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"You were so amazing, Sonic!"

"Thanks, Amy."

Sonic, Tails, Amy, Rotor, Knuckles, Julie-Su, Sally, and Nicole were currently sitting in the parking lot outside the stadium, waiting for their rides to come pick them up. Shadow had left right after the tryouts to go grab something to eat with Mina. Mighty and Espio had caught a ride with Vector when his dad pulled up in his giant van. Silver and Blaze had waited with the rest of the gang until Blaze's mom came and got them. Thus, only eight remained.

"You really were, Sonic," stated Sally with a smile.

The blue hedgehog smirked. "Well now. Is that a compliment I hear?"

"You can interpret however you like," answered Sally.

"You all performed at an exceptional level," commented Nicole. "You should take great pride in that."

"Yeah, no doubt," agreed Rotor. "Our coach from last year would've been thrilled."

"I don't know what you guys are talking about," said Julie-Su. "Knuckles made several mistakes that nearly cost him."

"Like when," demanded the red echidna.

"Like that time that guy almost got past you!"

"You mean the one where I forced the fumble?"

"Only after he almost got past you."

"But I forced the fumble!"

"Only after he almost got past you."

"Now you're just nitpicking," Knuckles said as he crossed his arms. "Any other _almost _mistakes that you want to point out?"

Smiling, Julie-Su leaned in close to the red echidna. "You didn't wave to me after your 40-yard dash."

Knuckles smiled and pushed Julie-Su away playfully. "You're impossible."

"Oh, I know," said the pink echidna with a mischievous wink.

Just then, Julie-Su's father pulled into the parking lot and lowered his window.

"Julie-Su, Rotor," he called, "let's get going!" The pink echidna and purple walrus stood up and made their way to the car waving goodbye to their friends as they went. As soon as the car pulled out of the lot, a sleek black limousine took its place.

"Well, there's our ride, Nicole."

Sonic cast Sally an envious look. "Why do you get to ride home in a limo?"

"Being the daughter of the mayor has its perks," replied Sally with a wink. "See you guys tomorrow." As Sally made her way to the limo, Nicole quickly turned to Sonic.

"I will see you tomorrow in Algebra, Sonic."

"Looking forward to it Nicole." The lynx blushed and rushed after Sally.

When Sally and Nicole had gone, Amy slid over to Sonic and wrapped herself around his arm.

"Now it's just the two of us," Amy said flirtatiously. Sonic rolled his eyes and gestured at Knuckles and Tails.

"They're still here, Ames."

"They don't count. They're not _girls_." Sonic sighed and pulled his arm away from Amy.

"Let's not start this, Amy."

The pink hedgehog winked and walked her fingers up Sonic's arm. "I got you, Sonic. Save it for a more private time."

"Here's our ride," Knuckles said a bit too loudly.

A large, rusty pickup truck pulled into the parking lot. Sitting behind the wheel was Uncle Chuck, a jovial grin on his face.

"Sonic! Tails! Knuckles! Let's hit the road boys." The three boys bid goodbye to Amy and got into the pickup truck. Tails took the front seat, while Knuckles and Sonic sat outside in the back. With a final goodbye wave to Amy, Uncle Chuck floored it through the parking lot and all the way back to the neighborhood.

"Uncle Chuck's kind of a crazy driver," yelled Knuckles, trying to be heard over the wind.

"Yeah," yelled Sonic, a large grin on his face. "It makes for an interesting ride."

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By some grace of God, Knuckles and Sonic were still in the back of the truck when Uncle Chuck pulled into the driveway. After getting out of the truck, Knuckles said his goodbyes to everybody and trotted across the lawn to his house.

"So," said Uncle Chuck as he, Tails, and Sonic walked into the house.

"How was your first day, boys?"

"Well," replied Sonic as he placed his backpack in the hallway. "If it's representative of what's to come, we're looking at a pretty interesting year."

* * *

**So there's Chapter 4. Next chapter should start my, One Week One Chapter goal.**

**The review button is there for anybody. Anyone at all.**

**Bonus points for whoever can tell me where I got the name for the stadium from.**

**Anyways, thanks for reading, and I hope to see you next time.**

**Later.**

_Kenyade_


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